Hurricane Irma: No school in Broward until at least Monday

CAPTION

Tim and Loretta Green of Marathon are just two of many Florida Keys residents whose homes were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Irma. In order to see whether his home survived the storm, Green chartered a helicopter Wednesday.

Tim and Loretta Green of Marathon are just two of many Florida Keys residents whose homes were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Irma. In order to see whether his home survived the storm, Green chartered a helicopter Wednesday.

CAPTION

Tim and Loretta Green of Marathon are just two of many Florida Keys residents whose homes were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Irma. In order to see whether his home survived the storm, Green chartered a helicopter Wednesday.

Tim and Loretta Green of Marathon are just two of many Florida Keys residents whose homes were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Irma. In order to see whether his home survived the storm, Green chartered a helicopter Wednesday.

CAPTION

"Just keep going forward, keep helping," says Robert Barnes in Duck Key. Barnes has been helping clean up his neighborhood after Hurricane Irma tore through the Florida Keys.

"Just keep going forward, keep helping," says Robert Barnes in Duck Key. Barnes has been helping clean up his neighborhood after Hurricane Irma tore through the Florida Keys.

CAPTION

Some seniors at Century Village in Pembroke Pines talked about the difficulty of not having power and enduring the heat after Hurricane Irma caused a power outage.

Some seniors at Century Village in Pembroke Pines talked about the difficulty of not having power and enduring the heat after Hurricane Irma caused a power outage.

CAPTION

Jimmy Johnson surveys the damage Hurricane Irma did to his home in Tavernier, in the Florida Keys.

Jimmy Johnson surveys the damage Hurricane Irma did to his home in Tavernier, in the Florida Keys.

CAPTION

Low-income, disabled seniors at Praxis community in Deerfield Beach are struggling without power and medication after Hurricane Irma swept through South Florida.

Low-income, disabled seniors at Praxis community in Deerfield Beach are struggling without power and medication after Hurricane Irma swept through South Florida.

Broward Schools Superintendent Robert Runcie said Tuesday that schools will not be open on Thursday and Friday. He is aiming for a Monday reopening.

“We’re fairly confident that we will be able to open school on Monday,” Runcie said at an afternoon news conference at the county Emergency Operations Center.

He said that depends on power, and Florida Power & Light Co. has pledged to try to get electricity back on in schools by the weekend. As of Tuesday afternoon, only 52 percent of schools have power fully restored.

Runcie said other work remains. He said some portable classrooms suffered a “significant amount of roof damage.” He said that’s a particular issue at Falcon Cove Middle and Cypress Bay High schools in Weston, both of which have lots of portables.

UNKNOWNS: Broward Mayor Barbara Sharief said there are still many questions that don’t have answers. For example, she said, there are not dollar figures for damage estimates.

There are many major roads that are still not free of debris — “too many to list right now,” as of Tuesday afternoon, she said.

And there still is not complete access to barrier islands on the county’s East Coast.

Because road conditions are still poor, because of debris and traffic light outages, bus service will stop at 7 p.m. Tuesday and operate only from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sharief said. The same is true for paratransit services.

GOVERNMENT SERVICES: Some county libraries and parks have reopened.

Courts will remain closed on Wednesday, Sharief said.

The county animal shelter will reopen Wednesday for admissions only. Pet adoptions will remove later in the week.

CURFEW: Broward Mayor Barbara Sharief said Tuesday there is no need for a countywide curfew even though several of the county’s cities have imposed their own.

“No curfew is necessary,” she said. “I’m not going to second-guess myself.” Sharief said Broward imposed a countywide curfew during the height of the storm because it was necessary for public safety reasons. She said those safety reasons no longer apply to the entire county of some 2 million residents.

“People need to get back to normal,” she said at a news conference at the county’s Emergency Operations Center. As for mayors who have imposed their own curfews and who may think the county should make it apply to everyone, she said, “they run their cities.”

Still, she said, that doesn’t mean people should be out driving around when they don’t have to. Travel is still difficult.

TRAFFIC LIGHTS: Sharief said a “majority” of the county’s traffic signals were out in the immediate aftermath of the storm. As of Tuesday morning, she said, about half weren’t functioning. She didn’t have specific numbers.

County crews are making repairs as quickly as possible, she said.

Traffic signals are coming back online, a county public affairs spokeswoman said later. As of Monday night, 35 percent of signals were operational. As of Tuesday morning, 45 percent of traffic signals were working.

The vast majority of lights — 85 percent — aren’t functioning because they have no electricity. Typically, when power is restored to an area, multiple traffic lights come back on. For example, a section of Broward Boulevard from the Florida’s Turnpike overpass to Pine Island Road was activated Tuesday morning when electricity was restored to the area.

“Please move slowly through intersections. I know everybody has some place to go. But we must be cautious in getting there,” Sharief said.

Later Tuesday, Sharief repeated the message more strongly after touring the county to assess damage. “I cannot tell you how many people I have watched run these four-way stops and run these lights,” she said. “You are going to cause an accident. We need you to slow down at intersections.”

CABLE SERVICE: Sharief said lots of Comcast cable and internet service is likely to come back online when power is restored, but that is not guaranteed.

If service does not come back once power is back, she said customers should call Comcast.

She reported that the cable company is using aerial drones to locate areas where wires are down.

FREE FOOD: JetBlue Airways is providing free food. The airline, which is the largest carrier at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, will pay for hot meals from 20 food trucks on Wednesday at the BB&T Center in Sunrise.

Lunch will be served from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. The arena is located at 2555 NW 136th Ave in Sunrise. Anyone who needs a hot meal is welcome.

PANTHERS DONATION: Matthew Caldwell, president and CEO of the Florida Panthers and Sunrise Sports & Entertainment, said the team’s foundation would provide $1 million in Hurricane Irma relief aid to Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties.

Appearing at a news conference with Sharief on Tuesday afternoon, he said the team would work with the Tampa Bay Lightning and the National Hockey League, which also would be making Irma relief contributions. Caldwell said he didn’t know how the Panthers Foundation money would be spent; he said he would discuss the needs with Broward County commissioners.

SUPPLY DISTRIBUTION: Water willbe distributed at critical “points of distribution,” called PODS in coming days.

Dan West, the county official who is coordinating the PODS, said as of late Tuesday morning, two will go to Pembroke Pines, one to Dania Beach and one to West Park. The need is acute in Pembroke Pines, he said, where as much as 40 percent may not have water and the rest must boil their water.

Decisions are based on the availability of potable water and electricity, he said. Power is a factor because people without electricity don’t have a way to boil water to make it safe.

They will distribute water only. No ice. No tarps. At this time, they also won’t distribute food, West said.

The PODS are supposed to arrive within 72 hours from the state. But, West said, the timetable and locations could change. The county isn’t yet providing specific sites because there’s nothing there for people to obtain.

Grocery stores and pharmacies are re-opening, Sharief said. So people can get supplies they need.

“Please do not panic. We do have supplies. Food is not scarce and neither is fuel in Broward County,” Sharief said.

As of Tuesday afternoon, Broward County hasn’t turned to the Red Cross for water and food distribution, West said.

There are two reasons. The incoming PODS for water, will take care of what is known as the pressing need for water: places without potable water or electricity to boil water. “We already have a well established water distribution plan built in with the state and federal” governments.

West said that volunteers from Red Cross, United Way and HandsOn Broward would play a key role in water distribution from the PODS.

The only kind of food the county has distributed in the past has been meals ready to eat, or MREs. If they are available, he said they’d be distributed. But, he said, all Publix stores in Broward are open. “That’s really good news.”

BROWARD COLLEGE: College President David Armstrong said there is minor damage to buildings on some campuses, no power to a handful of critical buildings, and lots of debris on campuses, many of which had large trees toppled. He said he doesn’t know yet when the college would reopen, but he is attempting to get staffers back to work sometime this week. He’s less certain about when classes will resume for students.

“We would love to get open this week if at all possible,” Armstrong said.

ROADSIDE HAZARDS: Drivers should watch out for debris at the side of the road that juts into roadways, said Margaret Stapleton, the county’s director of public communications.

If debris sticks out two feet into a lane, it could cause a driver to suddenly slam on the brakes. It’s also causing people to suddenly veer into the adjacent lane.

MEDICAL NEEDS: With a large share of Broward’s population still without power, people who are dependent on electricity for medical needs have been wondering where to go. Ric Barrick, assistant director of the county’s office of public communications, said Publix supermarkets and CVS pharmacies are allowing people to come to their locations with power to recharge their medical equipment.

PET NEEDS: With people heading back to work and many without electricity, Lisa Mendheim, of Broward Animal Care, said there are some steps pet owners can take if they have to leave their dogs and cats in hot homes without air conditioning.

--Provide plenty of fresh water, cooled with ice if available.

--People with battery operated fans should keep them running to provide some air circulation.

--Keep the house as dark as possible to avoid more heating from sunlight and crack a window if possible.

--Leave the pet with a friend who has air conditioning or ask an employer if the pet can be taken to work. Mendheim said that’s more important for older dogs and dogs with short snouts such as pugs; they have the hardest time with the heat. Cats generally fare better than dogs in heat.

Mendheim said cats generally fare better than dogs. Older dogs and dogs with short snouts such as pugs have the hardest time with heat.

REPORTING POWER OUTAGES: Broward Undersheriff Steve Kinsey said people are calling 911 to report power outages. He said they should call Florida Power & Light Co, not 911. The number to report FPL outages is 800-4-OUTAGE.

Sharief asked people not to use 911 to report property damage from the storm.

SHELTERS: All shelters used for people evacuating the storm have closed, Sharief said. One shelter, at Rock Island Elementary School, is still in use as a “transitional shelter” for 160 people, county officials said. It will close Wednesday at 7 p.m.

PHONE PROBLEMS: Service to about 46,000 landline phone lines in the general area of Oakland Park Boulevard and U.S. 441/State Road 7 was restored Tuesday. Another 234 landline phone users in Pompano Beach also can’t make or receive calls, including to 911, Sharief said.